21 Day Yoga Challenge

I picked up my first book on yoga in my early twenties, when I was just starting to explore the fitness world. I had heard that yoga had great physical and mental benefits, and I wanted to try adding it to my fitness program.

I absorbed the book and starting practicing regularly, sometimes twice a day. I thought to myself, "This is exactly like the warm up to all the gymnastic classes I took when I was a little girl." I was putting my body into all the poses I saw illustrated in the book, and reading the descriptions on what to do with your body while you're holding each pose, but I did not yet grasp the concept of synching my breath and movement.

I could go on and on detailing the emergence and evolution of my yoga practice, but I want to discuss my current commitment to Yoga Journal's 21 Day Yoga Challenge. I have practiced on and off for years, but I am making a pledge to myself that I will practice every single day for 21 days.

I practice yoga as a part of my regular fitness plan. I do it to increase my flexibility and range of motion, as well as use it as a way to clear my mind and relax. I have learned to be more patient from my yoga practice. To increase muscle flexibility, you have to stretch a specific muscle consistently. The longer you hold a stretch, the more pliable the muscle becomes, thus increasing range of motion. Flexibility is a primary component of physical fitness, and I am always striving to increase mine.

I will receive a daily email with a link to a yoga video. The videos will range from 15 minutes to an hour, and are instructed by respected members of the yoga community. Anyone may sign up for the challenge by registering on the Yoga Journal website. It's completely free, and a great way to get started in a yoga practice or broaden your current practice.

I selected the intermediate track because I already have an established practice. I performed today's video early this morning after a personal training client in the group exercise room at Anytime Fitness. I cut off the lights, turned Pandora internet radio on the Zen Garden channel, and completed the video watching it on a mobile device.

Todays video was very easy physically, but concentrated on synching movement and breath. I think it was an excellent introduction. The practice was led by yogini Kate Holcolmbe, and was about 20 minutes long. I felt relaxed and recharged, ready to go about my day when it was over.

I would love to have some company on my 21 Day Yoga Challenge. Please contact me if you are participating as well, and we can form a support group. I will continue to update my progress as the challenge continues, and I look forward to meeting each day's practice with enthusiasm.

Zumba® Biggest Loser Challenge

To help all my faithful Zumba® participants reach their fitness goals, I am holding a Biggest Loser Challenge. We won't be monitoring pounds lost, but rather inches. It will kick off on Thursday January 12th, and finish March 8th. That gives you guys eight weeks to work as hard as you can!

I will begin measuring participants before Zumba® at Valdosta Parks and Recreation on the 12th. Class starts at 6:00 pm, and I am planning to arrive at 5:00 to ensure I can get all the measurements completed prior to exercise. I will be doing all measuring before class starts for greater accuracy. Sweating and fatiguing muscles could affect the numbers. I will do this every Thursday for the duration of the challenge.

I will be taking measurements from three areas. The first will be the waistline. The definition of waistline is the narrowest part of the torso between the umbilicus (belly button) and xyphoid process (just below sternum on the rib cage) so it may be different for each individual. The second place I will measure will be the abdomen. I measure this as two inches below the navel. The third measurement will be taken around the hips. These three places are the primary areas where women hold the most fat, so a reduction in inches from these areas usually means the subject has lost fat rather than lean muscle.

I am getting together a very nice prize pack for the winner. Details on the contents will come at a later date. Several of my Zumba® students have volunteered to add some exciting items to it. I'm sure the winner will be very happy, not only with the prize, but with her new figure!

There is no cost to sign up, and I won't be cutting off registration on the 12th. If you'd like to join at a later date, you may, but be aware that the other participants will have a head start if you wait! So far, I have 19 people signed up, so there will be some fierce competition. I'm so excited to provide an incentive for reaching your goals. You can expect some killer workouts in my classes over the next few weeks to help you along the way!

Zumbatomic® coming in January

Zumbatomic® is a dance fitness program created by Zumba® for kids ages four to twelve. It combines high energy international music with kid-friendly choreography and games to teach children that exercise is fun, and that it is a very important part of a healthy lifestyle. I will be starting a weekly class here in Valdosta at Leapin' Lizards Party and Fun Zone later this month.

The children will be divided into two age groups. Li'l Starz are four to seven years old, and Big Starz are eight to twelve years old. The first half hour of the Zumbatomic® class will be aimed at Li'l Starz, and the second half will target Big Starz. This is just a recommendation because often children have limited attention spans, but the children are welcome to participate for the entire hour if they wish.

I do take into consideration that children's bodies are still developing, and I encourage them to move freely and naturally. A Zumbatomic® class is not just an adult Zumba® class that uses kid-friendly music. The steps are broken down during Zumbatomic® more so than in an adult class to make the children feel successful. The Zumbatomic® program also uses games to break up any monotony and help develop cognitive processes, as well as make it fun and easy.

The goal of Zumbatomic® is to show boys and girls that exercise is fun, and to help them develop a healthy lifestyle that includes regular exercise. The program can have many positive affects on children such as teaching them respect for others, teamwork, pride, confidence, and resposibility, as well as helping them improve coordination, balance, memory, and creativity.

The next Zumbatomic® session will begin on January 21, 2012 at Leapin' Lizards Party and Fun Zone on Dale Dr, right off St. Augustine Rd across from Blanton Commons Apartments, about a mile from the Valdosta Mall. The Li'l Starz will begin at 10:00, am and Big Starz start at 10:30 am. The cost for the entire session is $50 per child. This will include the weekly Zumbatomic class plus play time on the inflatables afterward. You can be sure your child will sleep well after Zumbatomic® and active play!

Please contact Jessica at 229.415.3782 for more information or to register your child.

Try our video maker at Animoto.

Zumba® in the Club!

Toward the end of 2011, some other local instructors and I introduced Zumba® to the Valdosta nightlife scene. In November we held our very first "Zumba® in da Club" master class at the Neon Cowboy nightclub. The floor was on fire with six different instructors and dozens of participants! It was so popular, they begged for more, and we had "Zumba® Ladies' Night Out" at Mikki's Bar in December. Check out some of the photos. To see more, please visit and become a fan of my Facebook page Zumba Fitness with Jessica Avera.

Special thanks to Lindsi Jones Photography for capturing all these amazing images!

Thanksgiving holiday class schedule

Because of the holidays, I will be canceling a few classes for the week of November 21st - 25th. There will be no Zumba® in the Circuit classes at Curves or Boot Camp at Anytime all week long, and all classes for Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday are cancelled. That leaves Zumba® at Anytime Fitness on Monday at 7 pm and at Valdosta Parks and Recreation on Tuesday at 6 pm. Get your workouts in before enjoying the holiday with your families!

Current Zumba® Playlist

Almost daily, someone who attends my Zumba® classes asks me the names and artists of certain songs. I wanted to make it easy for everyone by listing the songs I am currently using in my classes. Enjoy!

I'm Sexy and I Know It - LMFAO
Suave - Nayer ft Pitbull and Mohombi
Mr Saxobeat - Alexandra Stan
Mueve La Booty - Oro Solido
La Vida es un Carnival - Celia Cruz
Walk it Out (Merengue Remix) - DJ Mingo
Arabian Myth - Zumba Fitness Original Music
Dirty Harry (Schtung Chinese New Year Remix) - Gorillaz
Drop It (Coconut Tree Riddem) - Alison Hinds
Obsesion - Aventura
Open Road (I Love Her) - Chris Brown
Ven Conmigo - Daddy Yankee ft Prince Royce
Yeah! (Batuka Mix) - Dj Joao y Payasso
Mi Corazon Esta Muerto - Rakim y Ken Y
Mami - Kumbia Kings
No Me Diga Na - Amarfis y La Banda de Atakke
Danca Do Crue - MC Crue
No Puedo Vivir Sin TI - Los Ilegales
Wepa - Gloria Estefan
Ay Mama - Chayanne
Meniando La Cola - Sexappeal
Party Rock Anthem (Mambo Electro Remix) - Ariana
Promise - Romeo Santos ft Usher

Principles of Training

My personal training clients get results. If they complete training sessions with me, and do not eat in excess of what they are burning, they always get closer to their fitness goals. There is no secret to my success. I simply follow the basic guidelines to create an exercise program, and tailor it to the specific needs of each client.

In order to increase fitness levels, decrease body fat, or increase lean body mass, the body must undergo a type of stress that it isn't accustomed to receiving. Pushing past your normal capacities will force your body to respond, and will increase your limitations. For example, if you are currently sedentary, and then start a brisk walking program, soon walking will be much simpler for your body to perform because it has adapted to the overload you have given it. This is true of any body system.

There are four principles of exercise training, when altered, can help clients achieve desired results. These principles are frequency, how often you exercise per week, intensity, how hard you work out, time, the length of each exercise session, and type, the kind of exercise you are performing.

All the principles are interrelated, such as if you increase the intensity of an exercise, you probably can not perform it for the same length of time. I adjust each one of these variables for every individual client. Each person has different goals and means to get there, and changing the frequency, intensity, time, and type of the client's exercise program to overload the body is a foolproof plan for reaching these goals. Stimulating the body beyond its current capabilities is what makes my clients get results.

I do my very best to push my clients further than even they believe they can go. Whether it is that extra rep of a bicep curl, another minute jogging, or jumping up onto a box, I work hard to motivate my clients to challenge their bodies.